Installing in a click

Last Ubuntu versions enable you to install software by clicking on a link in your browser. If you want to install only some of the software
list in this page, you can do it by simply clicking on the links put on
the packages' names. This is not a security breach, since these
packages are installed using apt-get and your configured repositories.
It's only a little helper for lazy people :D

Mozilla Firefox et les extensions

For the moment, Mozilla Firefox 3 being still beta, numbers of extensions are not available on this version. If you can not live without theses extensions, you can install Mozilla Firefox 2:

sudo apt-get install firefox-2 firefox-themes-ubuntu

You will be able to use Mozilla Firefox 2 and 3 at the same time, until all your favorite extensions are available for Mozilla Firefox 3.

Configuration of apt repositories list

First, we reset our sources.list. It happens that in some cases (for
example, when the installation is done without Internet connection),
most of the repositories needed by this guide are disabled. We create a
backup of our original sources.list:

Manage shared folders

The configuration tool "Shared folders" available in previous versions of Ubuntu disappear for a easier tool. To enable it for your user, install Sambal:

/usr/bin/sudo /usr/bin/apt-get install samba

And add your use to the "sambashare" group :

/usr/bin/sudo /usr/sbin/adduser $USER sambashare

To share a folder, right-click on this folder in the explorer (aka. Nautilus) and click on "Share options" (approximated translation). (You may need to reopen your session (aka. log in again) to enable this).

For the moment i've not be able to find the codecs need to play DVD using Totem.

Note : If you want to use Totem to read your DVD (witch i do not recommand), run this command line :

sudo apt-get install totem-xine

Various enhancements

Desktop effects

Since Gutsy, desktop effects are available by default. In order to
enable them, go in the "Visual effects" tab of "System -> Settings
-> Appearance". If the default settings are not sufficient for your
needs, you can tweak them using the compizconfig-settings-manager :

sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

Hard disk checkup

In order to avoid to think when your hard disk has a problem, this
command line simplify the correction of errors during the repair of a
partition with problems :

Don't worry, it is not dangerous. It do what you would have done by
hand if you were confronted to the problem. Only professional file
system rescuers should have this setting to No (for me, it is clearly a
rest of the days where Linux was made for geeks by geeks)).

drapes :
A little software that take place in the notification area and
regularly change your background by picking in your image library.

subtitleeditor :
I often play video with subtitles. This little tool is a great subtitle
editor that can be used to resynchronize subtitles with the video (I
just love the fact that this software show the sound volume graphic).